Escape the Day
Ghostless

The information available online about this band is sparse and scarce. Escape the Day was a Berlin duo, Lars and Florian, influenced by acoustic music, ambient, and the more ethereal post-rock. After 2 years of activity, in 2005, Florian decided to end his life, and the only remaining member decided to (rightfully) close the group's career, leaving behind an already recorded album, which would have surely and unjustly ended up forgotten, but achieved good fame thanks to file-sharing.

And here we are commenting on "Ghostless", an unpublished album by a band that has since disbanded (for instance, even the cover is unofficial). The tragic fate of this band has undoubtedly given even more meaning to the music and words of these 8 songs, filled with a rare melancholy and desolation, traceable only in a few other works.

I mentioned post-rock influences, but we are nonetheless far from the traditional styles of the genre. The songs are almost entirely supported by guitars, whether acoustic or electric but always clean, transporting us on a dark journey in a city invaded by darkness (the opening "Hallways"), with the piano sometimes stealing the scene, taking us by the hand and accompanying us on solitary walks during winter days ("Days"), while the voices whisper softly spoken words, almost fearing to make too much noise. The lyrics are recited on more than one occasion in the opening minutes, leaving only the music to maintain the atmosphere for the rest of the song. The drums appear only sporadically, while variety in listening is ensured by some other implementations, like the keyboards and the cello section that occasionally peek through, the female voices accompanying in "Still" and dominating in "This Wave's Length" or the unusual clarinet in "If I Told You". The sole instance where anger replaces melancholy is at the end of the instrumental "The Hour Undone", with electric guitars creating an epic crescendo à la GYBE!

Among Florian's closest friends was Don Anderson, guitarist of Agalloch, who, at the same time as Florian's extreme act, was writing with the band what would become "Ashes Against the Grain". According to Anderson himself, the friend's suicide provided a driving force for the composition, and it is no coincidence that "Our Fortress is Burning" is dedicated to Florian. But the tribute doesn't end here: "The Hours Undone" and "Last Words" contain arpeggios that would be reprised in that very track, and if you watch a live performance of the song, you'll notice the guitarist at the beginning, almost gathered in prayer.

Minimal music that strikes deep, nothing new but written from the heart.
(oh, of course, this duo has nothing to do with the techno/pop/metal band of the same name)